African Bank wins Banking for Good Award at global Banking Tech Awards

African Bank has been honoured with the Banking For Good Award at the 2023 Banking Tech Awards in London. Now in their 24th year, these prestigious international awards acknowledge important developments in banking, finance and technology.

The Banking for Good Award celebrates the work of financial institutions which seek to uplift the communities they serve, demonstrating the values of connection, collaboration and generosity. This is why African Bank was created. Its founders, who include Dr Sam Motsuenyane and the late Dr Richard Maponya, were committed to the ideal of a trusted financial partner that would walk alongside communities on the path to prosperity.

African Bank received the Banking for Good Award in recognition of the outstanding contribution it has made through its comprehensive enterprise & supplier development (ESD) initiatives, which generate opportunities for South African small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs).

In a country beset with all manner of challenges, African Bank is determined to be a part of the solution — that's why it's passionate about contributing to the country’s efforts to address historic socioeconomic imbalances.

“Through our ESD initiatives, we aim to give SMMEs from previously disadvantaged communities the knowledge, business acumen, access to markets and funding that will allow them to grow and scale their businesses,” says Edna Montse, African Bank’s group chief transformation and sustainability officer. 

African Bank sees the process of stimulating economic growth as intrinsic to its success as a bank, and has underlined the importance of its ESD initiatives by making them an integral part of its Excelerate25 strategic objectives.

The issues the bank is trying to address are complex and require a holistic approach, which is why its ESD initiatives feed into its broader business banking vision. It is an approach which, African Bank believes, can create the optimal conditions in which underserved SMMEs can flourish, which will benefit the communities in which they operate. 

“We are humbled by both the international and South African recognition our work has recently received, and it motivates us to do even more. We are honoured to be able to continue the legacy of Dr Sam Motsuenyane and the late Dr Richard Maponya, and realise their vision of an African Bank for the people, by the people, serving the people,” says Montse. 

This article was sponsored by African Bank.